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As Laoag City is the provincial capital of Ilocos Norte, it houses the busiest commercial district in the entire province. Many types of businesses can be found within the city: supermarkets, department stores, groceries, lumber and hardware, drugstores, restaurants, pawnshops, banking and lending institutions, farm supplies, bakeries, construction and other firms. About 33 banks operate within the city, connecting it with the national and international financial market’s wide catalog of services such as savings/time deposits, foreign exchange, mutual funds, and loans for commercial and personal purposes. The businesses of Laoag City also have a mutually beneficial relationship with neighboring municipalities. The agricultural sector from other municipalities tend to sell their farm produce in the city’s public market, as opposed to going through a middleman or trader.

Number of Establishments: 5,684

Number of Hotels/Inn/Lodging: 31

Number of Banks: 33

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This is how this Tuned Mass Damper controls vibration on buildings.

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“Laoag” is an Ilocano term for light or brightness. Laoag City is known as the "Sunshine City" of the nation because it genuinely reflects an endless stream of possibilities.

In the north, Laoag City is a vibrant and active growth center that is a truly one-of-a-kind destination with surprises, panoramic sand dunes, lush vegetation, picturesque beaches, highland lures, and historical and heritage sites.

It is the province's business and trading hub and the capital of Ilocos Norte, home to numerous diverse business activities and establishments. The central business district is home to various establishments, including hotels, bars, restaurants, and banks. The Laoag City Commercial Complex, where businesses sell famous Ilocano goods like Inabel, Bagnet, Longganisa, and Sukang Iloko, is one of the centers of interest for tourists.

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The Laoag River Basin, which includes Laoag City, is the second-largest contributor to the Ilocos Region's economy. In 2018, the Ilocos Region's economy expanded by 6.5%, which was faster than the 5.8% expansion in 2017. In 2018, the region's GDP is valued at 289.9 billion pesos, assuming constant 2000 prices. Compared to its 2017 estimate of 272.1 billion pesos, this was 17.8 billion pesos higher. It was recorded at 257.3 billion pesos in 2016, compared to 237.2 billion pesos in 2015.

The catchment region accounted for 32.78% of the complete local work and 26.89% of the Gross Provincial Homegrown Items. The goal is for the Ilocos region to become one of the country's future corridors following development strategies for the region and the country.

The City of Laoag will eventually be impacted by the anticipated shift in the regional economic structure, given its accessibility to Ilocano communities. The proposed development entails a decrease in the employment ratio to agriculture and a target GRDP of 21.79% and 23.38%, respectively.

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With a total area of 9,949.29 hectares, or 78.05%, agriculture occupies the most land in Laoag City. Rice, mongo, corn, vegetables, sugar cane, watermelon, peanuts, tobacco, root crops, and, most importantly, garlic and onions are among the crops grown.

There are 262 hectares of forest land in Laoag City. These are in Laoag City's northern and eastern regions. The city's most well-known forest zone is the Bacsil forest, which runs east of the mountains.

Unfortunately, there is no commercial fishing ground in Laoag City. However, the barangays of La Paz and Caaoacan are regarded as highly productive fishing grounds. The barangays of Apaya, Araniw, and Cavit, as well as Gabu Sur, Calayab, and Caaoacan, all have scattered inland fisheries.

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The data above shows that the aquaculture sub sector contributed 73.45% to the total fisheries output. The municipal fisheries accounted for 18.90%, while the commercial subsector shared 7.65%. A low commercial subsector is due to minimal commercial fishery grounds in Ilocos Region, specifically in Ilocos Norte.

In terms of provincial shares, Pangasinan accounted for 81.55% of the region’s commercial fisheries production volume in the 3rd quarter of 2020. La Union followed with a 14.86% share and Ilocos Sur with a 3.59% share. No data was extracted from Ilocos Norte due to no activity from commercial fisheries.

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SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all)

Target 6.4: “By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity.”

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Residents of Laoag City have been urged to conserve water and use it wisely by the Ilocos Norte Water District (INWD).

According to John Teodoro, general manager of the INWD, the water supply in Laoag City has been observed to be decreasing by approximately 33% compared to previous years, particularly during the summer months (April and May)—when farmers are currently feeling the effects of the so-called El Niño, which is drying up farmlands and waterways.

In line with this, Laoag City is constantly experiencing a water shortage that affects the standard of living, especially majority has a farming profession. Local governments have been providing water pumps and sprayers to farmers to fight dry seasons, but this is not enough and not a long-term solution.

Furthermore, with the increasing establishment of Laoag City, there is an abrupt increase of demand for water supply, thus there is a need to implement projects that would prevent an imbalance.

The local government then again proposed to provide construction of additional reservoirs with filtration facilities. But pumps yield less than fifty percent of their usual production due to drought.

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As a second second-largest contributor to the Ilocos Region's economy, Laoag City has a reputation to maintain, and allocating more resources concerning water scarcity is a good investment for the city's continuous development.

Knowing that only 9 out of 80 barangays have productive inland fisheries and that Laoag City does not have any commercial fishing ground— a lack of water will significantly impact rivers, lakes, and other freshwater resources. In short, a lack of water leads to a decline in biodiversity. It harms the environment in several ways, including the loss of floodplains and wetlands, nutrient pollution, and increased salinity. The scarcity of water resources threatens ecosystems and biodiversity (such as freshwater fish). It has the potential to harm many residents who work in the fishing and farming industry.

As per PSA (2022), Laoag City has a whopping 94.7% employment rate, a 2 percent increase from 2021. This is significantly high and a good turnover despite being in a post-pandemic state. This number indicates that Laoag City is efficient and productive with its workforce, which is more reasons to focus on issues such as water scarcity to maintain the “all residents are entitled to work.” If not, this will result in a lack of job opportunities and a higher poverty rate. This calls for other unresolved UNSDGs (SDG 1 and 8), only if not addressed by SDG 6.

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The local government should provide a Desolenator to combat water scarcity. Through a process known as solar desalination, a Desolenator is attempting to contribute to the solution to the water crisis. Solar desalination is a promising method for generating fresh water from seawater supply. The Desolenator is a solar desalination device that claims to remove 99.9% of contaminants from water and produce approximately 15 liters of freshwater per day for only $774, or ₱38,700 (assuming ₱50 per dollar) per device. Additionally, the Desolenator's life span is estimated at 20 years, making it a technology that water-stressed communities can rely on for many years.

Despite the method's positive outcomes, the desolenator's high energy consumption is one of its significant drawbacks. The brine, a salty byproduct of the desalination process, is another major issue in addition to the high energy consumption. This water ends up in the environment because it has a lot of salt, other minerals, and possibly even chemicals. Marine life and different ecosystems are affected and its other surrounding.

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SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable)

Target 11.5 - "By 2030, significantly reduce the number of deaths and the number of people affected and substantially decrease the direct economic losses relative to global gross domestic product caused by disasters, including water-related disasters, with a focus on protecting the poor and people in vulnerable situations."

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Laoag City is not designed to be earthquake proof despite it being full of earthquake hazards

During the span of four months (July - October 2022), Laoag City experienced 3 high magnitude earthquakes. The strongest out of the three would be the earthquake on July 27, 2022, wherein the city suffered from a 7.2 magnitude earthquake. The assessment of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) concluded that both Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur have sustained ₱136 million in damages in terms of infrastructure, affecting schools and century-old buildings. Damaged buildings in Laoag City were mostly schools such as the Ilocos Norte College of Arts and Trade and RB Ablan Elementary School. The sole airport of Ilocos Norte which is the Laoag City International Airport had to temporarily stop its operations due to damages incurred from the earthquake.

Laoag City has a long seismic history and it can be attributed to its geographic location. The city is found within the Pacific Ring of Fire and is right next to the Vigan-Aggao Fault system. Substandard construction within the city using reinforced concrete structures were more susceptible and were either totally damaged or sustained significant structural damage as a result of earthquake exposure. The city is also home to many earthquake hazards. Sand boils, which are sand and water mixtures that emerge to the ground during an earthquake because of liquefaction, were reportedly observed in Barangay Zamboanga. Shear fractures were also discovered along J.P. Rizal Street as a result of the 1983 earthquake.

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First and foremost, earthquakes lead to the loss of lives and the injury of our loved ones. In the July 27, 2022 earthquake, 11 people were reported dead and 615 people were injured. On the other hand, 38 injuries happened as a result of the third and most recent earthquake. When compared to historic values from the 1983 earthquake which saw the deaths of 17 people and 80 injuries, the city has not yet improved on its earthquake mitigation.

Second, earthquakes disrupt many sectors such as education and industry, and are a financial burden to the city. As a result of the earthquakes in 2022, over ₱120 million would be needed to restore properties that were damaged. Schools and businesses had to temporarily halt operations for weeks due to damages incurred.

Finally, the city is located in an area that has a high risk of earthquakes. The city is located within the Pacific Ring of Fire, and is adjacent to the Vigan-Aggao fault system. There are many areas within Laoag that have earthquake hazards: landslides, liquefaction, and shear fractures are hazards that can be a risk to inhabitants.

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Laoag City is a coastal component city located in the west-central area of the province of Ilocos Norte. It acts as the provincial capital and it has a land area of 116.08 km² or 44.82 sq mi, making it 3.40% of Ilocos Norte’s total land area and one of the largest cities in the Ilocos Region. The city has an elevation of 57 m or 187 ft, with the highest point of the city having an elevation of 759 m or 2,490 ft.

Borders

Located on the eastern border of the city is the municipality of Sarrat, southeast would be the municipality of San Nicolas, and southwest would be the Municipality of Paoay. The Municipality of Vintar is located on the city’s northeast border, and the northwest border would be the Municipality of Bacarra. The western physical boundary of the city is the South China Sea, and the eastern physical boundary is the Cordillera Central mountain range.

Climate

The climate of Laoag is tropical savanna, with moderate to hot temperatures all year round. During the cold months between December and February, temperatures noticeably drop. The city has dry and wet seasons, with the dry season typically beginning in November and lasts until April, with the rest of the year being rainy. The Cordillera and Sierra Madre mountain ranges protect the city from northeast monsoon and trade winds, but they also expose it to southwest monsoon and cyclone storms.

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According to the 2020 Census, Laoag City is home to 111,651 people, divided into 25,285 households and averaging 4.37 members per household. This population constitutes 18.32% of Ilocos Norte’s total population, and 2.11% of the overall population of the Ilocos Region. The population density is equal to 962 / km² or 2,491 per sq mi. The city is composed of 50.8% males and 49.2% females. The median age of the citizens of Laoag is equal to 29 years old.

Age Distribution and Age Dependency Ratios

Majority of the population is made up of working-age citizens as about 65.9% of the total population are 15-64 years old. People aged 14 and below, which is the young dependent population including infants and babies, comprise 26.80% of the total population. The age group with the lowest population is 75 to 79 years old, which is made up of 1,549 individuals. Knowing these age groups, we can calculate the age dependency ratios. The youth age dependency ratio is equal to 41, which means that out of 100 individuals in the working population, 41 people are dependent on these individuals. On the other hand, the old age dependency ratio is equal to 11.01, making the total dependency ratio equal to 51.65.

Growth Rate and Historical Population

When the city had its first census in 1903, it had 34,454 inhabitants. Comparing it to the latest census, the population increased by 77,197 within the span of 117 years. From 2015, the population grew from 111,125 to 111,651, which means that it grew by 0.10%. The population also displays a steady growth rate since the city’s discovery, as the average growth rate equated to 1.06% per year.

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The city engineer can advise people to construct tuned mass dampers to buildings that are prone to earthquakes. A tuned mass damper (TMD), also known as a "harmonic absorber," is a piece of equipment connected to a specific point in a structure that lowers the vibration's amplitude whenever a powerful lateral force, such as an earthquake or strong winds, strikes. TMD comes in two fundamental varieties: the Horizontal TMD, which is typically seen in thin structures like communication towers and spires. The other form is called Vertical TMD, and it is typically used in horizontal buildings with large spans, such bridges, floors, and walkways. The horizontal TMD could be used in tall buildings such as the ones found in the city’s central business district, and the vertical TMD can be used at government buildings like the Capitol, which are long horizontal structures.

The benefit of a TMD is that it can be applied to an existing structure as a retrofit when vibration and acceleration problems are discovered, or it can be incorporated into the initial concept design of a building to reduce the size of vertical or horizontal elements. Therefore, newly constructed buildings such as the residential buildings in the countryside and the tall buildings found in the CBD can incorporate a TMD in their design. Buildings from the colonial era such as the Sinking Bell Tower, the Cathedral, and the Amphitheater can also construct TMDs in order to absorb the frequency from earthquakes.

Unfortunately, TMD’s require a large space, complex equipment, and capable expertise for installation. TMD’s may not be feasible in old colonial buildings with little space, and may even cause unforeseen problems due to lack of structural integrity of the buildings. On top of this, the effectiveness of the TMD is dependent on accuracy of the tuning, and determining the natural frequency of a structure is difficult and requires seasoned professionals; this means that huge costs will be incurred by the government and building owners.

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Elias, S., & Matsagar, V. (2017). Research developments in vibration control of structures using passive tuned mass dampers. Annual Reviews in Control, 44, 129–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arcontrol.2017.09.015

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